Cincinnati Reds first baseman Joey Votto (back) is being held out of the starting lineup for Wednesday's game against the New York Mets due to back tightness. Reds manager David Bell stated that Votto has dealt with the ailment before and that the team is just playing things safe by holding Votto out of Wednesday's contest. Votto was also on the bench for Tuesday's game. At the time it seemed like a rest day, but it could have been related to this issue as well. The 38-year-old should be considered day-to-day for now. Brandon Drury will be holding down first base for Wednesday's game.

The Cincinnati Reds got blown out 15-7 against the Chicago Cubs Thursday night, but first baseman Joey Votto did what he could to stop it, going 3-for-5 with a home run, two runs, and an RBI. The longtime Red is slashing .224/.342/.398 with six home runs, 22 runs, and 25 RBI in 58 games. It's a far cry from Votto's 2021 season numbers, but considering he hit .129 with a .434 OPS in the first month of the season, fantasy managers should be happy with those results. He isn't hitting enough to be a starter in every league, but his .342 OBP still makes him a good contributor in OBP leagues.

Cincinnati Reds first baseman Joey Votto is getting the day off on Friday against the San Francisco Giants and left-handed starter Carlos Rodon. Votto has been pretty bad this year, but he's gone 6-for-22 (.273) with a 1.156 OPS, two home runs and six RBI in seven games since returning from the COVID injured list on May 20. But the veteran's overall slash still looks terrible at .156/.314/.271 with nine RBI and eight runs scored in 118 plate appearances. The 38-year-old still has time to turn things around, and he's notoriously been a slow starter. Mike Moustakas will play first and hit sixth against Rodon on Friday. Moose is hitting only .220 with three homers and 10 RBI, and he's gone 5-for-26 (.192) against southpaws this year.

The Cincinnati Reds activated first baseman Joey Votto from the COVID-19 injured list on Friday. In corresponding moves, left-hander Ross Detwiler was placed on the bereavement list. The Reds also selected the contracts of right-hander Graham Ashcraft, infielder Taylor Motter and outfielder Aristides Aquino from Triple-A Louisville and sent infielder Jose Barrero to Louisville on a rehab assignment. Votto has been away from the team for almost three weeks after he tested positive for the virus. He went 2-for-11 with four walks in four minor league rehab games. The 38-year-old left-handed slugger has been ice-cold this year, hitting .122/.278/.135 with no homers, three RBI and 29 strikeouts in 90 plate appearances. Fantasy managers may want to keep him on the bench until further notice.

Cincinnati Reds first baseman Joey Votto will move his minor league rehab assignment from Triple-A Louisville to Single-A Dayton on Tuesday. Votto is currently recovering from COVID-19 and has gone 1-for-4 with an RBI, three walks and two strikeouts in two games with Louisville so far. The Reds are hopeful that the 38-year-old will be able to rejoin the team for their weekend road trip against the Toronto Blue Jays. Votto is off to another slow start this year, slashing just .122/.278/.135 with no home runs, three RBI, four runs scored and 29 strikeouts in 90 plate appearances over 22 games. Fantasy managers may want to keep him benched upon his return until he starts to heat up at the plate.

Cincinnati Reds first baseman Joey Votto (illness) began his rehab assignment at Triple-A Louisville this past weekend. He played in two games and went 1-for-4 with three walks, an RBI, a run scored and two strikeouts. The 38-year-old landed on the COVID-19 injured list at the start of the month. The specifics of what Votto was dealing with have not been disclosed, but it's likely that he came down with some symptoms. The Reds haven't released their plans for Votto's activation yet, but based on the fact that he played in back-to-back games this weekend, we'd expect him to return to the team just about any day now.

Cincinnati Reds manager David Bell provided a vague update on first baseman Joey Votto (illness) on Wednesday. Bell stated that Votto will likely be out "more than a couple of days." Votto was placed on the COVID-19 injured list on Tuesday after he began dealing with symptoms. He self-reported the symptoms and we don't really know any specifics as to what types of symptoms he's dealing with at this point. Colin Moran should continue to serve as the team's primary first baseman while Votto is out.

The Cincinnati Reds placed first baseman Joey Votto (illness) on the COVID-19 injured list on Tuesday. Votto was initially included in the starting lineup for Tuesday's game against the Milwaukee Brewers. However, he began feeling symptoms before the game and was taken out of the lineup and moved to the COVID-19 injured list. Colin Moran will be covering first base and batting seventh in Tuesday's game. It's been a rough start to the 2022 season for the 38-year-old veteran. He's slashing just .122/.278/.135 over 22 games on the year and he's still searching for his first home run.

Cincinnati Reds first baseman Joey Votto went 0-for-4 with three strikeouts in the Reds' 4-3 loss to the Colorado Rockies on Saturday. It has been an absolutely horrible start to the 2022 campaign for Votto who is now slashing just .129/.291/.143 with no homers, three RBI, and 27 strikeouts through 21 games and 70 at-bats. The 38-year old Votto is coming off a 2021 campaign in which he slashed .266/.375/.563 to go with 36 HR and 99 RBI. Managers are hoping this poor April is not a sign of Votto's age catching up with him. For now, fantasy managers who have other options at first base may wish to bench Votto until he shows some signs of life at the plate. Hopefully, as the calendar flips to May, he can start to turn things around.

Cincinnati Reds first baseman Joey Votto has had a tough start to the 2022 season, slashing .133/.250/.156 with two RBI and 20 strikeouts through 13 games. To make matters even more concerning, the six-time All-Star is seeing career-worsts in advanced metrics such as a .134 xBA, .217 xSLG, and 38.5% K rate. The 38-year-old's 36-homer, 99-RBI 2021 campaign very well might've been the Cincy legend's final fantasy-relevant season of his Hall Of Fame-caliber career.

Cincinnati Reds first baseman Joey Votto helped lead the team to a blowout 15-4 win over the Arizona Diamondbacks in Sunday's Spring Training game. He went 3-for-4 in the game with a home run, two doubles, a walk, two RBI and three runs scored. The 38-year-old is now slashing .297/.333/.622 over 11 spring games. He's coming off the best season he's had in several years. In 2021, he hit 36 home runs, just one shy of his career-high, and he also compiled 99 RBI and 73 runs. Don't let his age scare you. He's a viable option as a first base starter in fantasy if you wait to fill the position or he can be utilized as a utility bat for you.

Cincinnati Reds first baseman Joey Votto went 1-for-5 with a three-run homer in a 6-3 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates on Sunday. Votto took Pittsburgh reliever Cody Ponce deep in the fifth inning as part of a four-run frame. After struggling in the power department over the past few years, the veteran first baseman wrapped up a bounce-back season in 2021. Votto hit .266 with 36 homers, 73 runs, 99 RBI, and a steal over 448 at-bats to post his best all-around season since 2017.

Cincinnati Reds outfielder Nick Castellanos and first baseman Joey Votto are getting the day off on Wednesday as the team faces Carlos Rodon and the Chicago White Sox. The Reds were officially eliminated from the postseason on Tuesday, so it's not particularly surprising to see the two stars getting the day off. Max Schrock is manning first base on Wednesday while Aristides Aquino is covering right field. The Reds are off on Thursday, so both Castellanos and Votto will get a pair of days to rest before the team opens a road series against the Pittsburgh Pirates to close the year.

Cincinnati Reds first baseman Joey Votto went 2-for-4 with two homers and four RBI in a 13-1 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates on Monday. Votto hit a pair of two-run homers in the lopsided win, one in the first inning and one in the fourth. The veteran infielder is wrapping up an impressive rebound season, hitting .270 with 35 homers, 71 runs, 96 RBI, and a steal over 433 at-bats. He is just three homers away from setting a new career-high after he hit 37 back in 2010.

Cincinnati Reds first baseman Joey Votto (knee) is back in the starting lineup for Monday's game against Connor Overton and the Pittsburgh Pirates. Votto missed the team's previous two games while dealing with knee soreness. The 38-year-old veteran has a 1.051 OPS so far in September. He has 33 home runs on the year, just four shy of his career-high of 37, which he set back in 2010. It's been a fantastic revival campaign for the Red star who is slashing .268/.379/.557 over 124 games on the season. His .936 OPS on the year is his highest since 2017, up from .800 last year.

Cincinnati Reds first baseman Joey Votto went 3-for-3 with two homers, two walks, two runs, and three RBI in a 9-5 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates on Monday. Votto hit a two-run shot in the third inning and added a solo blast in the fifth to pace the Reds in their comeback win. After a slow stretch, Votto has picked it up at the plate, hitting three homers over his past two contests. Overall, he's hitting .272 with 33 homers, 68 runs, 92 RBI, and a steal over 419 at-bats. He should stay locked into fantasy lineups now that he's swinging a hot bat again.

Cincinnati Reds first baseman Joey Votto went 1-for-1 with a pinch-hit, solo homer in an 8-5 loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers on Sunday. Votto was originally scheduled for a day off but he came off of the bench to pinch-hit for the pitcher in the ninth inning, taking Kenley Jansen deep. The veteran first baseman has been scuffling at the plate of late, hitting just .227 with three homers over his past 15 games. Overall, Votto has a .267 average, 31 homers, 66 runs, 89 RBI, and a steal over 416 at-bats.

Cincinnatti Reds first baseman Joey Votto is not in the starting lineup Sunday against the Los Angeles Dodgers. Tyler Stephenson will step in at first base, batting cleanup against left-handed starter Clayton Kershaw. While Votto has put together a resurgent campaign with a .914 OPS, he's slashed a slightly more pedestrian .217/.373/.435 over his last 30 games and 92 at-bats. He has not homered since September 10. The on-base skills will always be there for Votto, but fantasy managers have come to expect more with batting average and home runs.

Cincinnati Reds first baseman Joey Votto went 1-for-3 with a solo homer and a walk in a 4-2 win over the St. Louis Cardinals on Friday. Votto took St. Louis starter Jon Lester deep in the fourth inning to tie the game at 2-2. The homer was Votto's 30th of the season, the third time in his career he has reached that milestone and the first time since 2017. Overall, Votto is hitting .269 with 62 runs, 87 RBI, and a steal over 394 at-bats. He has homered in two straight games as he looks to heat up after a slow start to the month of September.

Cincinnati Reds first baseman Joey Votto went 1-for-4 with a solo homer in a 4-1 loss to the Chicago Cubs on Wednesday. Votto took Chicago starter Alec Mills deep in the fourth inning to give the Reds their only run of the contest. That was Votto's first homer since August 20 as he has cooled off of late. Over his past 15 games, Votto is hitting just .178 with five RBI. Overall, the veteran is slashing .269/.368/.547 with 29 homers, 61 runs, 86 RBI, and a steal over 391 at-bats.